THE state of IT in the force, issues around collaborative working, voluntary severance and investigations by the Independent Police Complaints Commission all came up at the force\u2019s latest Question Time.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a fantastic opportunity to get things off your chest,\u201d said Zuleika Payne, Chair of South Yorkshire Police Federation.<\/p>\n
She attended the event on 14 February alongside the Police and Crime Commissioner Alan Billings and the Chief Constable Stephen Watson.<\/p>\n
Zuleika added: \u201cIt\u2019s great to have a frank dialogue and give concerns an airing. You can hold people to account, ask the question that perhaps other people want to know the answer to but daren\u2019t pose it.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen people have those questions that niggle and gnaw away at them it\u2019s a fantastic opportunity and cathartic for some. And it\u2019s great to hear the answers from those who are accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n
While there were only 17 officers and members of staff in attendance at the last event, Zuleika said she would encourage people to come to the next force Question Time in a few months.<\/p>\n
She concluded: \u201cWhat\u2019s important to note here is that perhaps we don\u2019t see the attendance figures we would like, however we recognise that people are incredibly busy and they have other commitments. But the organisation is keen to offer these sessions and it is keen to promote them.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really important that views are shared, that they\u2019re aired, people get a point of view across and people are listened to, because the recent [force] peer review shows that in the past the organisation hasn\u2019t listened, so this is a way of correcting that and addressing it by people having their voice heard.\u201d<\/p>\n